Tag: stories

Laundromat Diaries June 24th 2022

Posted on by jsunrain

I decided to take a half day off work. I am seeing a friend in Chicago tomorrow and it is nice to take my time and get laundry done early.

First I went to Foxtown Heritage Meats in Mequon Wisconsin. My first time there. It was beautiful and clean and the service lovely friendly. I bought some brats for over the weekend and some potato salad for lunch. Then I dropped something off at the post office. After that I stopped at home to drop off my work backpack and put the brats in the fridge. I grabbed a soda to take with me to the laundromat.

When I entered there were a couple of older women already there seeming to take up most of the washers. One was sitting on one end and the other was sitting at the other end and they both intently stared at me while I loaded the second to last washing machine available. I gave them each a quick look back and went to a table down the other aisle of the laundromat.

I sat down and ate my potato salad and caught up with social media and the politics of the day and there has sure been a lot of politics this week. But we will make this a place a refuge from said politics. All of a sudden I heard all this clambering about. It was a man collecting the coins from the machines. That reminds me, I need to make sure I have enough coins for the dry cycle. Looks like I do! Also time to change to the dryer.

I am at dryer 209. Top row, 4th from back. Not my usual dryer. I try to get the same washing machine and dryer every time. Note to self: early Friday afternoon is not the time to do laundry. I don’t know if it is this way during this time every week, but it seems a bothersome time to come. Now my clothes will be in the dryer over an hour, time to play a couple of my favorite phone games.

I was done playing my games, I had looked up the best way to cook brats. Going to try the air fryer method. After I used the bathroom I went to sit in the easy chair. At that point a mother and son came in. They are speaking a foreign language. Sounds European but I don’t really know. I am sure I have seen them here before. I love hearing foreign languages. I still have a half hour left, going to read an article I hadn’t gotten to yet.

Dryer done, not even close to being done reading the book long article, but time to go home!

Laundromat Diaries June 17th 2022 (episode 2)

Posted on by jsunrain

Older woman in easy chair here before me reading a magazine. I put my laundry in the washer. I take a couple photos around the laundromat. There is a new tattoo machine. I post the photos to Instagram.

I settle down at one of the booth tables as I like to do. Before I can get too settled a flurry of new people come in. There is a lot of conversation by the washers on the other side of the laundromat. I don’t know who is talking to who. In the background is the worst of the 80s music. I am more Bauhaus and Siouxsie and less Billy Joel and Phil Collins. I always forget to bring headphones with me.

Tonight I finally decided to tackle a project I have been meaning to do for a while, fountain pen art. I am horrible at art but I keep trying. I have some blank spaces in my commonplace journal, time to fill them in. If you get a hand written letter from me you will always get that sun in the end.

The man I see every Friday, who comes slightly after me must have snuck past me. I just put my clothes in the dryer and all the commotion of earlier is gone. Just that guy and I minding our own business.

Now some new people for a bit. Some of my fountain pens won’t start so I squeeze the ink a bit out with the piston. I best be careful or I will have ink on my fingers and then my clean clothes. I think all my pens need a good cleaning!

Oops!

At some point I am done though the page is not near filled. Thankfully I am not too princess precious about my commonplace journal. I am sure throughout the years I will look back and laugh, and that has a lot of value too!

I go and wash my hands. Seems the new family is sticking around while their clothes get washed. I have about 45 minutes to play games on my phone while I wait for my clothes to dry.

I decided to get some of those tattoos. The one machine wasn’t working so I got three from the other side! They are hilarious but you won’t see me wearing them. 🙂

The one man that comes after me leaves before me, but I like my clothes bone dry, I leave them to dry for over an hour. Finally a song I like comes on. Joan Jett “I love Rock n Roll”! I take my backpack with my notebooks and pens out to the car and come back in and wait for my clothes to dry. I am finally by myself. But there are plenty of washers and dryers going waiting for their people to return to them!